monarch butterfly(Danaus plexippus), a familiar plexippusfamiliar member of the milkweed butterfly family Danaidae (order Lepidoptera), distributed throughout the world but concentrated mainly group, known for its large size, its orange and black wings, and its long annual migrations. Monarchs are concentrated in North, Central, and South America but can also be found in Australia, Hawaii, India, and other locations, albeit intermittently in some.

The monarch’s wingspan averages 90 to 100

millimetres

mm (about 4 inches). The

distinctive

coloration of the

reddish-brown

orange wings, marked by black veins and a black border with two rows of spots, warns predators of the insect’s bad taste. The

edible

palatable viceroy butterfly (seebrush-footed butterfly) mimics the monarch’s coloration and pattern as a form of defense.

In North America thousands of monarchs gather in autumn , and migrate southward(, sometimes traveling more than 2,900 kilometres [almost 3,000 km (about 1,800 miles]) , overwinter (occasionally reproducing), and to overwinter on the California coast or on a few mountains northwest of Mexico City. All begin to return north in the spring. During the return journey the monarchs stop , feeding on nectar along the way, deposit eggs, and die. After hatching and maturing, the new generation . Eggs are laid only on milkweed plants, and a new generation hatches, matures, and continues the northward trip.

The monarch caterpillar grows to is easily recognized by its vertical stripes of black, white, and yellow-green. After several molts, it attains a length of 45 mm (1 45 inches) and pupates almost 2 inches). The caterpillar usually leaves its milkweed plant to pupate elsewhere as a pale - green, golden-spotted chrysalis. Adults live only a few weeks, except for those that migrate south and winter in Mexico.

Like all butterflies and moths, monarchs are classified in the order Lepidoptera.